A daily dose of odds and sods, some interesting, some bizarre, some funny, some thought provoking items which I have stumbled across the web. All to be taken with a grain of daily salt!!

Tuesday, June 2

Chip off the old block?

Now quite an interesting COIN tactic here, no? Use the very thing that drives the poor, dispossessed men into the Taliban hands to identify the targets. I quote:

WASHINGTON: The CIA is equipping Pakistani tribesmen with secret electronic transmitters to help target and kill al-Qaeda leaders in the tribal belt, in a tactic that could aid the Pakistan’s Army as it takes the battle against extremism to the Taliban heartland, the Guardian reported. But a deadly war of wits is already under way in the region, where tribesmen say the US is using advanced technology and old-fashioned cash to target the enemy.Over the last 18 months, the US has launched more than 50 drone attacks, mostly in South and North Waziristan. US officials claim nine of the top 20 al-Qaeda figures have been killed. That success is reportedly in part thanks to the mysterious electronic devices, dubbed “chips” or “Pathrai” (the Pashto word for a metal device), which have become a source of fear, intrigue and fascination. “Everyone is talking about it,” said Taj Muhammad Wazir, a student from South Waziristan. “People are scared that if a Pathrai comes into your house, a drone will attack it.” According to residents and Taliban propaganda, the CIA pays tribesmen to plant the electronic devices near farmhouses sheltering al-Qaeda and Taliban commanders. Hours or days later, a drone, guided by the signal from the chip, destroys the building with a salvo of missiles. “There are body parts everywhere,” said Wazir, who witnessed the aftermath of a strike.

Interesting, its cutting off the baseline support:

In Wana, foreign fighters are shunning the bazaars and shops, and locals are shunning the fighters. “Before, the common people used to sit with the militants,” said Wazir. “Now they are also afraid.”